Curriculum

Early Years Foundation Stage

EARLY YEARS FOUNDATION STAGE CURRICULUM

There are seven areas of learning and development that are all equally important and inter-connected.

Three areas are crucial for igniting children’s curiosity and enthusiasm for learning, and for building their capacity to learn, form relationships and thrive.

Communication and language
Physical development
Personal, social and emotional development

There are also four specific areas, through which the three prime areas are strengthened and applied.

Literacy
Mathematics
Understanding the world
Expressive arts and design

At Little Bunny our high quality provision involves activities and experiences for children including:

High quality planning, delivery and resources

The early years lead has a secure understanding of standards in the provision. They have taken effective action to enhance the quality of education that children receive and to ensure that children make typically strong progress from their starting points. They have taken decisive action to ensure that the maximum number of children are ready for Year 1.

Our highly skilled teachers and teaching assistants consider the individual needs, interests, and stage of development of each child in their care, and use this information to plan a challenging and enjoyable experience in all of the areas of learning and development.

If throughout the early years, any child’s progress in any of the prime area show cause for concern, we pro-actively discuss this with parents and agree how both school and home can best support the child. Together, we consider whether a child may have a special educational need that require specialist support. We draw on the expertise of outside agencies and help families to access relevant support from other agencies as appropriate.

Each area of learning and development is planned through purposeful play and a mix of adult led and child-initiated activity. Play is essential for children’s development, building their confidence as they learn to explore, to think about problems, and relate to others. Children learn by leading their own play, and by taking part in play which is guided by adults. The Foundation team will actively respond to each child’s emerging needs and interests, guiding their development through warm, positive interaction. As children grow older, and as their development allows, it is expected that the balance will gradually shift towards more activities led by adults, to help children prepare for more formal learning.

The Foundation Team are highly experienced in planning and guiding children’s activities, based on the different ways that children learn.

Home-Nursery Partnership.

This partnership is central to everything we do and we actively encourage an open and

supportive partnership between home and Nursery. The importance of small details or changes

that may affect your child cannot be underestimated and we encourage you to inform any

member of our Foundation team at the start or end of the school day.

INTENT

At Little Bunny Childcare Centre, the curriculum is designed to recognise children’s prior learning from previous settings and their experiences at home and provide first hand learning experiences,

whilst allowing the children to build resilience, ambition and integrity. Every child is recognised as a unique individual and we celebrate and welcome differences within our school community. The ability to learn is underpinned by the teaching of basic skills, knowledge, concepts and values. We believe that children’s first experiences of school should be happy and positive, enabling them to develop a lifelong love of learning.

We intend:

to work in partnership with parents and carers to encourage independent, happy learners who thrive in school and reach their full potential from their various starting points.
to understand and follow children’s interests and provide opportunities throughout our EYFS curriculum to support learning, consolidate and deepen knowledge and ensure children meet their next steps.
to prepare children to reach the Early Learning goals at the end of the Foundation Stage and ensure children make at least good progress from their starting points.
to raise children’s aspirations and equip them with the knowledge and skills needed so that they are prepared for the Year 1 curriculum
to foster the development of children’s character, personal development, health and wellbeing, preparing them to make a valuable contribution to society
to promote speech, language and communication opportunities to strengthen children’s ability to learn and articulate their learning at a deeper level
to provide children opportunities to develop spiritual, moral, social and cultural understanding
to prepare children for life in modern Britain and help them to develop an awareness of how they can contribute to and understand their local community.

IMPLEMENTATION

Throughout EYFS at Little Bunny Childcare Centre, we follow the Early Years Statutory Framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage. This framework specifies that children will learn new skills, acquire new knowledge and demonstrate understanding through the seven areas of the EYFS curriculum-

• Personal, Social and Emotional Development

• Physical Development

• Communication and Language

• Literacy

• Mathematics

• Understanding the World

• Expressive Arts and Design

These 7 areas are used to plan children’s learning and activities. During each week, the children will work with an adult to complete at least one 1:1 reading session as well as an adult led literacy task and an adult led maths task. Children take part in a daily phonics lesson daily. Children are then encouraged to engage in open ended learning in both the indoor and outdoor provision. A vital aspect in the development of essential knowledge and skills is the use of continuous provision. This means that children are using and developing taught skills throughout the year on a daily basis.

Continuous provision practice and principles begin in EYFS and support children to develop key life

skills such as independence, innovation, creativity, enquiry, analysis and problem solving. During the school day, children will have an opportunity to work independently, work collaboratively with their friends and with members of staff.

Daily guided activities are also planned to cover different areas of the EYFS curriculum and allow children to develop their next steps in learning. Through observation and discussion, areas of need and next steps are identified for all children to ensure good progress is made. There are also a range of stimulating and engaging activities which the children can access independently and a variety of opportunities for child-initiated play. In planning and guiding children’s activities, we reflect on the different ways that children learn and reflect these in our practice. Staff in the EYFS make regular observations of the children’s learning to ensure their next steps are met. We regularly assess the children’s progress using ‘Development Matters’ and then ensure our planning, adult interaction and learning environment; including continuous provision, support children to reach their next steps. We provide interventions for groups or individuals if and when necessary.

Children in EYFS learn by playing and exploring, being active, and through creative and critical thinking which takes place both indoors and outside. Our outdoor areas are used all year round and in most weather conditions. We ensure activities support the Characteristics of Effective Learning to ensure learning takes place. These are:

Playing and Exploring – children investigate and experience things, and have a go
Active learning – children concentrate and keep trying if they encounter difficulties, and enjoy achievements
Creating and Thinking Critically – children have and develop their own ideas, make links between ideas and develop strategies for doing things.

IMPACT

From their different starting points, all children will make good progress academically, emotionally, creatively, socially and physically.
Knowledge, understanding and skills will be secured and embedded so that children are ready for their next stage of learning.
They will have strong communication skills, both written and verbal, and will listen respectfully and with tolerance to the views of others.
They will take pride in all that they do, always striving to do their best.
They will demonstrate emotional resilience and the ability to persevere when they encounter challenge.
They will develop a sense of self-awareness and become confident in their own abilities.
They will be kind, respectful and honest, demonstrate inclusive attitudes and have a sense of their role in our wider society

The impact of our curriculum is measured by assessment procedures which allow us to measure outcomes against all schools nationally. We measure the percentage of pupils achieving age related expectations throughout the academic year, putting supportive interventions in place if and when needed. Class teachers use observations to make formative assessments which inform future planning and ensure that all children build on their current knowledge and skills at a good pace.

Summative assessment compares children’s attainment to age related expectations using month bands in Development Matters. Our assessment judgements are moderated both in the Centre and externally. We also partake in local authority moderation which has validated our Centre.

Curriculum

Early Years Foundation Stage

High quality planning, delivery and resources

Home-Nursery Partnership.

IMPLEMENTATION

IMPACT

Be Ready :

Be Respectful:

Be Safe: